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Another side of Bob Gifford To the Editor: John Curtis’ article on Robert Gifford [“Goodbye, Dr. Gifford,” Fall 1999|Winter 2000] captures many of my best memories of Yale. Like many others, I was fortunate enough to have Bob Gifford as a mentor during my first two years of medical school. He made the transition into medicine so fascinating and inspiring for us that it was no coincidence that my med school chum Jim Sullivan, M.D. ’73, and I became rheumatologists. The only other teacher-physician who made a deep impression on me was the late infectious disease specialist and chief of medicine at Waterbury Hospital, George Thornton, M.D. Oddly enough, he grew up with Bob and went to church where Bob’s father was the minister. Dr. Thornton related to me (and many others, I’m sure) that Bob was something of a choirboy growing up. However, this choirboy was caught throwing spitballs down on the congregants, apparently incurring his father’s wrath. I think Bob never lost that free spirit that enables him to connect with students. Role models like him are extraordinarily rare. I hope the dean can convince him to unretire one more time. Gary V. Gordon,
M.D. ’73
The first use of penicillin To the Editor: Your story on John F. Fulton [“Fulton, penicillin and chance,” Fall 1999|Winter 2000] brought back memories. Perhaps you will permit me to add a few facts. Dr. Fulton was Sterling Professor of Physiology at the time and not a clinician. The clinician who engineered the obtaining of some penicillin was Dr. Francis G. Blake, Sterling Professor of Medicine as well as the medical school’s dean. I recall many a night, as a senior intern on the isolation ward, walking from Fitkin (Dr. Blake’s office) to Brady, where a filter was available courtesy of Dr. Morris Tager of Bacteriology, and back to isolation with the “precious product.” It was necessary to filter the solution made from the yellow powder received from Merck in Rahway, N.J., to be certain there were no residual bacteria. This was then given to the patient, 5,000 units intravenously every four hours. Today we think nothing of giving a million or more units several times daily. One of my clear memories is that of Dr. Wilder Tileson on rounds that Monday morning looking at the very graph of Mrs. Miller’s chart you published and mumbling just loud enough for those of us close enough to hear, “Black magic!” Your comment from Herb Tabor, M.D., was pertinent. You might have added that in addition to his distinguished career as a research biochemist, he has been senior editor of the Journal of Biological Chemistry for many years. Charles M.
Grossman,M.D., HS ’44
More facts on Fulton To the Editor: I recently received the Fall 1999|Winter 2000 issue of Yale Medicine. On page 12, there is a picture of Drs. Fleming and Blake. I am not sure, but I think Dr. Blake is on the left and Fleming is on the right. The article mentions that Dr. Fulton was in the hospital at the same time Mrs. Miller was being treated for postpartum infection. It does not mention what Dr. Fulton was being treated for. We were told years ago that he had developed coccidioidomycosis following a visit to California and that the penicillin was originally intended for him, but he got well without it and it was then used for Mrs. Miller. Finally I must make a comment about which I imagine you can do nothing. Having had bilateral cataract surgery recently and several changes of eyeglasses, I find that I still cannot see clearly. The print in the magazine is so small I must use a bright light and a magnifying glass to read it. Even this is only of partial assistance. I wonder if other older alumni have this problem and if it might be possible to use larger type? Paul R. Bruch,
M.D. ’51
Thanks to Dr. Bruch and others who wrote to correct the identification in the photograph. Dr. Blake is indeed pictured on the left. As for the size of Yale Medicine’s body type, we are continuing to experiment with improvements to legibility. In addition, readers with access to the Internet may read the articles online (and control the type size via their Web browser) at info.med.yale.edu/ymm.
Easing children through surgery To the Editor: This letter is written is response to your article about the work of Zeev Kain. [“Easing children’s minds about surgery,” Fall 1999|Winter 2000.] I trained at Yale in the late 1950s, when there were no pediatric surgeons on the staff. After completing my training, including a year at Pittsburgh Children’s Hospital, I returned to practice with Dick Selzer. I was the first surgeon trained as a pediatric surgeon and had quite a time convincing the hospital and Blue Cross that outpatient surgery was a good thing for children and deserved coverage. Drs. Pickett, Toloukian and Seashore followed and established an excellent pediatric surgery section. Besides the use of sedation, as the article mentioned, there are many other ways of reducing stress. Playing children’s music in the operating room makes a big difference, too. It relaxes the children and the staff. However, I was deemed an explosion hazard the first time I showed up with my tape recorder, in the 1970s, when cyclopropane and ether were still in vogue. I also have found that children are excellent subjects for hypnosis and that simple stories and suggestions will often change their attitudes toward surgery. A statement such as “You’ll be going out” can be scary if it is understood to mean “out of control.” On the other hand, “You will go to sleep in the OR” induced sleep in several of my young patients almost instantly as they were wheeled to surgery. I often spoke to children and adults while under anesthesia because they hear and respond to the suggestions and information given them. I was considered crazy until the beneficial effects were seen. Then I got to present anesthesia grand rounds. As a matter of fact, my greatest compliment came from Dr. Jake Goldstein, who declared I was equal to 10 cc’s of Pentothal. Hopefully the surgeons are less of a problem today than in the past. If not, there are drugs available that could be helpful. Perhaps preoperative sedation for surgeons should be the next study undertaken. Bernie Siegel,
M.D., HS ’61 P.S. I am always available for another grand rounds.
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